One byte at a time with Jeff Tiedeman

Main menu

Tag Archives: reuben casserole

There are several things that separate good cooks from mediocre ones. For one thing, good cooks have an appropriate knowledge and use of spices (including salt). Another is that they don’t substitute just any old thing for an ingredient they may not have on hand.

For me, there is another characteristic of a good cook that tips the scale. A good cook is one who can make a tasty dish out of what they have in the kitchen cupboard, pantry, refrigerator or freezer.

The meal we’re having for supper tonight falls into the third category. I put together a casserole with items from all four of the above-mentioned places where food is stored.

From the freezer, I pulled out a ring of sausage. The pantry shelf yielded a quart of homemade sauerkraut and some cream of mushroom soup. In the cupboard, I discovered a package of egg noodles. And in the refrigerator, there was some Swiss cheese, mustard, milk, butter and onion.

Along with some rye that I picked up at the supermarket earlier in the day, those ingredients came together for a casserole, which would great for a potluck and that some might say resembles a Reuben, sans the pastrami or corned beef and Thousand Island dressing.